Should children have to compete for their education?

08-17-2011

Guest blog by Mary Fertakis/Washington Post

Should children have to compete for their education? Earlier this year, I had an opportunity to put that question to U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan following his speech to more than 800 school board members from around the country at the National School Boards Association’s Federal Relations Network Conference in Washington, D.C. It’s a question that has weighed on me as I’ve watched cash-strapped states repeatedly driven into a “race” to compete for federal education funds. Evidently, it’s a question that resonates with a lot of my colleagues, as the room erupted in spontaneous applause while Secretary Duncan pondered his response (“No, they shouldn’t have to compete for their education, but …”). What frustrates so many school board members is that this “competition” mindset is fundamentally unfair because it rests on the premise that everyone is starting from the same place. The reality is very different. (more...)

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